Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) – Resources
Selected recent or important resources focusing on Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs).
Rural Health Care: Supporting Lives and Improving Communities
Presents the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance May 16, 2024, hearing on rural healthcare. Discusses the financial vulnerability of rural hospitals, the rural healthcare workforce and graduate medical education (GME), access to maternal healthcare, health information technology and telehealth, and more. Features testimony from the Chartis Center for Rural Health; Grande Ronde Hospital, a Critical Access Hospital in Oregon; the Wisconsin Collaborative for Rural Graduate Medical Education; and the Rural Policy Research Institute.
Additional links: Jeremy P. Davis, Grande Ronde Hospital - Testimony, Keith J. Mueller, Rural Policy Research Institute - Testimony, Lori Rodefeld, Wisconsin Collaborative for Rural Graduate Medical Education - Testimony, Michael Topchik, Chartis Center for Rural Health - Testimony
Date: 05/2024
Sponsoring organization: Senate Committee on Finance
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Presents the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance May 16, 2024, hearing on rural healthcare. Discusses the financial vulnerability of rural hospitals, the rural healthcare workforce and graduate medical education (GME), access to maternal healthcare, health information technology and telehealth, and more. Features testimony from the Chartis Center for Rural Health; Grande Ronde Hospital, a Critical Access Hospital in Oregon; the Wisconsin Collaborative for Rural Graduate Medical Education; and the Rural Policy Research Institute.
Additional links: Jeremy P. Davis, Grande Ronde Hospital - Testimony, Keith J. Mueller, Rural Policy Research Institute - Testimony, Lori Rodefeld, Wisconsin Collaborative for Rural Graduate Medical Education - Testimony, Michael Topchik, Chartis Center for Rural Health - Testimony
Date: 05/2024
Sponsoring organization: Senate Committee on Finance
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National Health Service Corps Site Reference Guide
Provides clarification for National Health Service Corps (NHSC) sites regarding eligibility requirements, qualification factors, compliance, roles and responsibilities, and other factors for becoming an NHSC approved site. Acts as a supplemental resource to the information provided in the online NHSC Site Application.
Date: 05/2024
Sponsoring organization: Health Resources and Services Administration
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Provides clarification for National Health Service Corps (NHSC) sites regarding eligibility requirements, qualification factors, compliance, roles and responsibilities, and other factors for becoming an NHSC approved site. Acts as a supplemental resource to the information provided in the online NHSC Site Application.
Date: 05/2024
Sponsoring organization: Health Resources and Services Administration
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Quality Improvement Workbook
Outlines seven steps of the quality improvement process. Offers interactive worksheets to help Critical Access Hospitals develop and support quality improvement goals and projects.
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: Rural Quality Improvement Technical Assistance (RQITA) Resource Center
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Outlines seven steps of the quality improvement process. Offers interactive worksheets to help Critical Access Hospitals develop and support quality improvement goals and projects.
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: Rural Quality Improvement Technical Assistance (RQITA) Resource Center
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2023 National CAH Quality Inventory & Assessment National Report
Presents a high-level summary of key data points from the October-December 2023 National Critical Access Hospital (CAH) Quality Inventory and Assessment. Includes data on CAH system affiliation; median average daily census and emergency department volume; hospital inpatient, behavioral health and specialty care, and outpatient and other service lines; and CAH quality payment model participation.
Author(s): Megan Lahr, Robert Barclay, Madeleine Pick
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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Presents a high-level summary of key data points from the October-December 2023 National Critical Access Hospital (CAH) Quality Inventory and Assessment. Includes data on CAH system affiliation; median average daily census and emergency department volume; hospital inpatient, behavioral health and specialty care, and outpatient and other service lines; and CAH quality payment model participation.
Author(s): Megan Lahr, Robert Barclay, Madeleine Pick
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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CAH Financial Indicators Report: Summary of Indicator Medians by State
Presents state and national median values of 29 financial indicators included in the Critical Access Hospital Measurement and Performance Assessment System (CAHMPAS). Provides an overview of each measurement and reports median values by state. Indicators represent seven areas of financial performance: profitability, liquidity, capital structure, revenue, cost, utilization, and other.
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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Presents state and national median values of 29 financial indicators included in the Critical Access Hospital Measurement and Performance Assessment System (CAHMPAS). Provides an overview of each measurement and reports median values by state. Indicators represent seven areas of financial performance: profitability, liquidity, capital structure, revenue, cost, utilization, and other.
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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MBQIP 2025 Measure Core Set Information Guide
Provides an overview of the 2025 Core Measure Set adopted by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) for use in the Medicare Beneficiary Quality Improvement Project (MBQIP). Offers descriptions, rationales, data elements, data availability, resources, and more for each new and continuing measure.
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: Rural Quality Improvement Technical Assistance (RQITA) Resource Center
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Provides an overview of the 2025 Core Measure Set adopted by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) for use in the Medicare Beneficiary Quality Improvement Project (MBQIP). Offers descriptions, rationales, data elements, data availability, resources, and more for each new and continuing measure.
Date: 04/2024
Sponsoring organization: Rural Quality Improvement Technical Assistance (RQITA) Resource Center
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Partnerships to Address Social Needs Across Metropolitan and Non-Metropolitan Prospective Payment System Hospitals and Critical Access Hospitals
Explores the extent to which hospitals partner with community organizations to address population and/or community health needs. Analyzes data from the 2021 American Hospital Association Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) Supplement to describe the number and types of hospital partnerships with community-based organizations. Compares results by hospital type - metropolitan prospective payment system (PPS), Critical Access Hospital (CAH), and non-metropolitan PPS - and by U.S. Census region, ownership status, and accountable care organization (ACO) participation.
Author(s): Whitney E. Zahnd, Khyathi Gadag, Kristin D. Wilson, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 03/2024
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Explores the extent to which hospitals partner with community organizations to address population and/or community health needs. Analyzes data from the 2021 American Hospital Association Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) Supplement to describe the number and types of hospital partnerships with community-based organizations. Compares results by hospital type - metropolitan prospective payment system (PPS), Critical Access Hospital (CAH), and non-metropolitan PPS - and by U.S. Census region, ownership status, and accountable care organization (ACO) participation.
Author(s): Whitney E. Zahnd, Khyathi Gadag, Kristin D. Wilson, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 03/2024
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Report to Congress on Medicaid and CHIP, March 2024
Reports on three aspects of Medicaid of interest to Congress: 1) improving the Medicaid beneficiary experience through Medical Care Advisory Committees (MCACs) and federal government actions to aid states, 2) increasing the transparency and improving the monitoring of the denials and appeals process in Medicaid managed care, and 3) reviewing hospital payment policy for the nation's safety-net hospitals. Chapter 3 examines the relationship between disproportionate share hospital (DSH) allotments to states and the number of uninsured individuals, the amounts and sources of hospitals' uncompensated care costs, and the amounts and sources of hospitals' uncompensated care costs. Table 3-1 details DSH spending for urban and rural hospitals and for Critical Access Hospitals.
Date: 03/2024
Sponsoring organization: Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission
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Reports on three aspects of Medicaid of interest to Congress: 1) improving the Medicaid beneficiary experience through Medical Care Advisory Committees (MCACs) and federal government actions to aid states, 2) increasing the transparency and improving the monitoring of the denials and appeals process in Medicaid managed care, and 3) reviewing hospital payment policy for the nation's safety-net hospitals. Chapter 3 examines the relationship between disproportionate share hospital (DSH) allotments to states and the number of uninsured individuals, the amounts and sources of hospitals' uncompensated care costs, and the amounts and sources of hospitals' uncompensated care costs. Table 3-1 details DSH spending for urban and rural hospitals and for Critical Access Hospitals.
Date: 03/2024
Sponsoring organization: Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission
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MedPAC Report to the Congress: Medicare Payment Policy: Skilled Nursing Facility Services: Chapter 6
Discusses payment adequacy for skilled nursing facility (SNF) services. Features statistics on SNF care provided by rural hospitals and Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) via swing beds and Medicare margins for urban and rural freestanding SNFs in 2022.
Date: 03/2024
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Discusses payment adequacy for skilled nursing facility (SNF) services. Features statistics on SNF care provided by rural hospitals and Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) via swing beds and Medicare margins for urban and rural freestanding SNFs in 2022.
Date: 03/2024
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Unrelenting Pressure Pushes Rural Safety Net Crisis Into Uncharted Territory
Examines financial and operational metrics for rural hospitals. Discusses the growth of Medicare Advantage (MA) enrollment in rural communities between 2019 and 2023, the impact of MA on rural hospital reimbursement, how the Rural Emergency Hospital (REH) designation can provide a path forward for some rural facilities, and the discontinuation of obstetrics and chemotherapy services at rural hospitals since 2011. Includes the percentage of rural hospitals in each state vulnerable to closure and nine factors significantly associated with rural hospital vulnerability.
Date: 02/2024
Sponsoring organization: Chartis Center for Rural Health
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Examines financial and operational metrics for rural hospitals. Discusses the growth of Medicare Advantage (MA) enrollment in rural communities between 2019 and 2023, the impact of MA on rural hospital reimbursement, how the Rural Emergency Hospital (REH) designation can provide a path forward for some rural facilities, and the discontinuation of obstetrics and chemotherapy services at rural hospitals since 2011. Includes the percentage of rural hospitals in each state vulnerable to closure and nine factors significantly associated with rural hospital vulnerability.
Date: 02/2024
Sponsoring organization: Chartis Center for Rural Health
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Last Updated: 2/12/2025